Overnight cues are mixed-to-constructive — a soft US inflation print and a chip-led Asian rally have steadied global risk appetite — but GIFT Nifty is signalling a soft, lower open for Indian equities, with the surprise exit of Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran the single biggest domestic driver today.

US: prior close (Aug 12)

Wall Street ended mixed as an in-line July CPI eased fears of a Fed rate hike. The S&P 500 rose 0.26% to 7,748.50 and the Nasdaq added 0.54% to 26,588.49, while the Dow slipped 0.04% to 53,770.27 (Business Standard, Washington Post).

Asia: trading now

• Kospi +3.76% — a chip-sector rebound, with Samsung and SK Hynix surging.
• Nikkei 225 +1.45%; China CSI 300 +0.05% (Business Standard).

Europe (prior close)

European stocks closed higher on Aug 12; the Euro Stoxx 50 rose ~0.5% to a record ~6,553. DAX and FTSE 100 levels n/a at the time of writing.

India lead: GIFT Nifty

GIFT Nifty was quoted around 24,447, down ~26 points near 8 AM IST, pointing to a soft, negative-biased Nifty open (Business Standard; NiftyTrader had it ~24,433).

Commodities & currency

• Brent crude ~$87.96, -1.15% — snapped a six-day rally after OPEC+ cut its 2026 demand forecast; the US-Iran conflict stays the wildcard (Business Standard).
• Gold futures broadly flat; India 24K gold ~₹15,486/g (~₹1,54,860 per 10g), up ₹104 (HDFC Sky).
• USD/INR ~₹95.4; Dollar index (DXY) ~99.83 (near flat); US 10Y yield ~4.68-4.70% (Trading Economics).

Economic data due today

• US PPI (Jul) — forecast +0.2% vs -0.3% prior; Initial Jobless Claims — forecast 202K vs 199K prior, both 6:00 PM IST (Investing.com). A hot PPI would revive Fed-hike bets and could pressure EM/India flows; a soft print keeps the risk-on trade alive.
• India: no major macro release today — WPI (Jul) is due tomorrow, Aug 14 (June came in at 9.87%). July retail CPI, out yesterday, edged up to 4.45% on food prices.

Headlines & movers

• Tata Sons: N Chandrasekaran to step down as chairman (staying until Feb 2027) — Tata Group counters in focus, though analysts expect them to largely shrug off the news (Business Standard).
• Chip rally (Samsung, SK Hynix) set the global risk-on tone; OPEC+'s demand-forecast cut weighed on oil.
• IPOs: Milky Mist Dairy on its final day; Shiprocket in day 2; Credent Connect opens for subscription.

What it means for the India open

Expect a soft, cautious open despite friendly global cues — GIFT Nifty is pointing lower and traders may book gains ahead of tonight's US PPI. Cheaper crude is a tailwind for oil marketers and importers, while Tata Group stocks are the ones to watch after the leadership shake-up. The afternoon direction likely hinges on the US wholesale-inflation print.

As of ~8:50 AM IST, 13 Aug 2026. Sources: Business Standard, Washington Post, Investing.com, Trading Economics, HDFC Sky. Automated pre-market brief for discussion and education only — not investment advice. Verify before acting.